Throughout Ted Lasso season 2, assistant coach Nate Shelley (Nick Mohammed) went from having jet black hair to being fully gray by the season finale. Nate’s character growth over the course of the show has been of great interest to audiences, as they watched him go from a bullied equipment manager to assistant coach for the AFC Richmond club. Much of this growth was facilitated by Ted’s (Jason Sudeikis) ability to see potential in people and put them in a position to succeed.
In season 2, viewers watched as the deeply-rooted insecurity seen from Nate in Ted Lasso season 1 manifested as arrogance and a need for total respect. These character flaws came to light after season 2, episode 6, “The Signal,” when Ted Lasso left the match with a panic attack and Nate stepped in to call player substitutions that brought Richmond a victory. It has always been apparent that Nate has more football knowledge than Ted but as Ted Lasso season 2 continued, Nate became even more dissatisfied with taking a backseat to Coach Lasso. This dissatisfaction even brought Nate to the point of betraying Ted by telling the press about Ted’s panic attack.
Following this betrayal, Ted confronts Nate during halftime of a huge match in Ted Lasso season 2, episode 12, “Inverting the Pyramid of Success.” In an emotional and furious outburst, Nate reveals that he felt neglected by Ted after becoming an assistant and leaves the match without joining the celebration when Richmond wins. The final shot of the Ted Lasso season 2 finale episode shows that Nate has taken a job as coach of the team owned by Rupert (Anthony Stewart Head), ex-husband of Richmond owner Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham). This shot also marks the culmination of another, smaller arc: Nate’s graying hair.
Why Nate’s Hair Goes Gray In Ted Lasso Season 2
Nate’s hair is fully gray in this close-up shot, in striking comparison to his black hair at the beginning of season 2. While the change in hair color has taken place gradually, it has certainly not gone unnoticed and seemed to be intentional. Many have wondered if the change in Nate’s hair color is a visual representation of the character’s stress level or an indication of villainy. The answer seems to be a bit of both and more according to a tweet from Nick Mohammed, which provides detail into the care that was put into his character in this season.
The image in the tweet contains notes from Mohammed about the build-up to the end of Ted Lasso season 2 with Nate’s disappointing departure from AFC Richmond. Many of the details seem very small and could possibly have been missed or forgotten by viewers over the course of the show. For example, one note reveals that Ted and Nate don’t have any one-on-one scenes the entire season until the confrontation in the Ted Lasso season 2 finale, which somewhat validates Nate’s accusations of Ted. Mohammed also reveals that the change to his hair was indeed intentional, with a combination of bitterness, guilt, shame, and stress causing the turn to gray.
This is not the first time that Ted Lasso’s writers have used visual aids to provide insight of their character’s emotions. The much-discussed season 2, episode 9, “Beard After Hours” used a blue moon to symbolize Beard’s loneliness and melancholy. Nate’s graying hair has been a more subtle and long-term visual aid for viewers to show his rising level of stress and guilt over the season. Audiences suspect that the bulk of Ted Lasso season 3 will continue to track Nate’s story and hope to see him redeemed and return to AFC Richmond.
Ted Lasso Makes Nate’s Hair Grey As A Football In-Joke
In addition to its more general symbolism of the character’s arc, Nate’s gray hair in Ted Lasso season 2 is also an insider reference to British football. According to an actual study, managing football is liable to turn a person’s hair gray from stress. Stress is the canonical reason for Nate’s gray hair as well, but this shared characteristic with real-life football managers like Kevin Keegan and Alex Ferguson adds another layer to the story. In addition to illustrating Nate’s declining mental health within Ted Lasso season 2’s story, his gray hair also symbolizes that he has become a “real” football manager. This serves as both an in-joke to audiences who watch Premier League football and, in some ways, a validation of Nate’s skill’s as a coach. Even though Nate’s Ted Lasso journey has taken a dark turn, it also shows interesting progress for his character.
